


Carve for me a home in the halls of your heart

by AWalkingParadox



Category: The Penumbra Podcast
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Especially Peter, Everyone Needs A Hug, Forgotten Gods, M/M, Potentially Heavy Angst, Will add tags as I go, Will have angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-13
Updated: 2020-06-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:33:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24696073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AWalkingParadox/pseuds/AWalkingParadox
Summary: “We live in a world of gods and men, my little monster.” Sarah once told them, seated on an old rickety chair as she hugged them close. “They are divine. They are holy. They are untouchable. But they are not immortal.”
Relationships: Peter Nureyev/Juno Steel
Comments: 12
Kudos: 34





	1. Prologue

“We live in a world of gods and men, my little monster.” Sarah once told them, seated on an old rickety chair as she hugged them close. “They are divine. They are holy. They are untouchable. But they are not immortal.”

She cradled sleeping Ben, rocking him slowly under the star light. With her other hand, she tucks a stray lock behind Juno’s ear, her handles gentle in the quiet night. She looks up at the deep blue of space, at the flickering lights that dot the sky. “They are like stars. They all shine so bright, but like all stars do, there will come a day when they, too, will flicker out and die.”

“How do they die?” He had asked, chin perched on his tiny hands.

“They rely on us, on mortals, to remember them. They rely on worship, on offerings and praise. As long as the memory of a god lives, so do they.”

“Why don’t we ever see them, then? Why do we never meet them if they want us to remember them?”

“You meet them everyday, Juno.” She had run her hand through his hair, and he shivered at the warmth. “They walk amongst us, unseen.”

“Well that’s stupid.” Juno had stuck out his tongue, arms crossed on his little chest, “If I had powers I wouldn’t shut up about them.”

Sarah had laughed, it was one of her genuine ones, too; scratchy and deep, faltering but sincere. “That’s the way of gods, my little monster. It’s not our place to question that.”

“I want to meet one one day, mama.” He had said, “I want to talk to a god.”

She had only pulled him close, burying her face into his hair. “I believe you will, Juno. You and Ben, both. You were destined for greatness, greatness befitting the gods.”

She had then gripped him by the shoulders, face serious in the moonlight. “Stay with each other, Juno. Stay with your brother. You have only each other in this world. Gods are temporary, they are far away,” She places a finger over his heart, “but you, the love you two share is the most precious thing you can ever have. Treasure it.”

“Yes, mama.” He had answered, as he fell asleep in his mother’s arms. She had hugged him then, leaving the last part of her warnings unsaid.

Nothing in this world lasts forever.


	2. One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red sand stretches far, far enough that the sky and horizon melts into a crimson canvas. The sun flickers, poisonous in its heat. One can walk miles and miles and still feel as if they’d never moved at all. Of course, that’s assuming one would willingly walk into a place such as this, a place where death is almost a guarantee. 

Red sand stretches far, far enough that the sky and horizon melts into a crimson canvas. The sun flickers, poisonous in its heat. One can walk miles and miles and still feel as if they’d never moved at all. Of course, that’s assuming one would willingly walk into a place such as this, a place where death is almost a guarantee. 

Amidst the red sand, a lone figure stands upright. He resembles barely a speck on the expanse, and yet, he stands, unperturbed by the heat and sting. He lifts a hand to his brow, eyes roving past and over the dunes. He sighs. 

The man lets his hand drop back to his thigh, lips pursed in indecision. He takes a step, and then another, and then another. Then, he runs. He scrambles up the dunes, movements more frantic with every passing minute, worn boots and fingers digging into the red. 

A few meters ahead, a shadow of another lies unconscious in the sand.

~•~

Juno Steel awakes to a weight on his chest. Now this isn’t a very uncommon occurrence. Juno finds it pretty often that he wakes up to a heavy heart, mind fuzzy and eye bleary, but this weight was of a more physical kind. Not only that, he feels warmth, too. Which is weird, he thinks, cause the heating in his apartment’s been broken for five years now, and the landlady’s been too busy hitting up low end gambling dens to give a damn. 

He wiggles his fingers a bit, shaking out the residual stiffness that usually comes with a long night, and moves it up to his chest. The weight is coarse and thick, almost cardboard in texture, certain parts more worn and stretched thin than others. It’s a coat, he realizes. 

He opens his eye.

The sky is dark, deep purple instead of its burning red. Firelight crackles beside him, bright and warm in the cold of a desert night. He looks past it and jolts to see a man staring at him. Orange glints off the stranger’s glasses. His face is lean, sharp, with raven hair spilling over his eyes and onto his shoulders. Fangs peek past his lips.

“You’re awake.” He says. His voice is deeper than Juno expected, a low timbre that send chills down his spine.

Juno opens his mouth to respond, but instead of words harsh coughs tumble out. He curls in on himself, fingers clawing the hollow of his throat.

The man pushes a canteen into his shaking hands, “Drink. The water will help.”

He drinks it in desperate gulps, rivulets dripping down his chin. It tastes  _ amazing _ . “ _ Fuck. _ ” Juno rasps, “Who the hell are you?” 

The stranger arcs an inquisitive brow, face unreadable in the flame’s light. “Forgive me if I’m mistaken, but I don’t think it’s proper etiquette to be interrogating one’s savior.” 

“Yeah, well, etiquette’s for people who’ve got money to spare. Or something to live for. Seeing as I’ve got neither, how ‘bout we spare ourselves the niceties?” Juno says. He shuffles upright to some semblance of a sitting position, coat still loosely draped over his shoulders. 

The stranger remains silent, staring at him over the rim of his glasses. Juno averts his gaze, fingers scratching his wrists. “Thanks. I guess.”

The stranger hums, finally breaking eye contact. He feeds the flames with more wood chips. “That wasn’t so hard, now was it?” He digs through a satchel by his side, fishing out a plastic packet. “Care for a biscuit?”

“You never answered my question.” Juno glares, though the effect is muffled by how his hand subconsciously reaches for the crackers. 

“I’m a traveler.” The stranger says, amused. “I go places.”

“What places?”

“Anywhere. Everywhere. The world is wide, my dear.“ He fishes a cracker out for himself, munching on it thoughtfully. “I never did get your name.”

“I didn’t get yours either, bud.” Juno says, biting down on the snack with much less class. “Mind giving it?”

For the first time since waking up, Juno sees a flash of hesitation in those dark eyes. And something else. Sorrow. 

“Of course, how could I forget.” The stranger bares his fangs, smile sharp, “You may call me Rex Glass.”

“That’s the fakest name I’ve ever heard of, y’know.” Juno snorts, “And that’s saying something, in my line of work.”

“Well it’s the one you’re getting, so you’ll have to live with it.” Juno studies him intently, watching the way the flames light the contours of his face. He looks timeless, skin smooth but eyes haunted. His words are practiced, said with the ease of a conman. His hands are unflinching. Juno wants to ask him more, to see what lies behind those dark eyes.

“Juno Steel, private eye.” He says, instead. “Well, ex-private eye. Not really in that business anymore.”

“Oh? Is that why I happened to find you unconscious in a Martian desert?” Glass gives him a strange look, questioning and understanding fit into a glance. It’s unnerving, to say the least.

“Hey, a lady has his quirks.” Juno shrugs, “This lady seemed to have found himself on the messy side of things. Was only a matter of time, really.” He sighs out the last part, suddenly feeling really really tired. 

Glass seems to have sensed this as well, and he claps his hands together, dusting off the crumbs. “It’s late, I’ll keep watch for tonight. Get some rest, Juno. We’ve a long day ahead of us.”

Juno nods, snuggling back into the warmth of the coat. In the morning, he’ll feel embarrassment at having used the other man’s coat as a blanket. He’ll grump and stammer and question. He’ll ask why Glass travels the desert alone, why he hides his name, why he looks as if he’s seen the world in its entirety and feels its weight on his shoulders; but for tonight, he closes his eye, burrows deep into the warmth, and tries to forget how the way his name fell from the other’s lips makes his heart tremble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> peter: you have be a level 10 friend to get my tragic backstory


	3. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a conversation happens

“Where are we going?” Juno huffs, hiking his shoes higher, “Glass, answer me dammit.”

“Detective, I’ve already answered you.” Came the placid reply, “In fact, I’ve answered your question the many times it’s been repeated.”

“ _ ‘Wherever the wind takes me. _ ’ isn’t an answer, Glass.” Juno bites back, his voice comically dipping an octave lower.

For the first time since day break, Rex Glass shows a sliver of emotion: affront. “That’s not what my voice sounds like, Juno, you know that.”

“Oh yeah? I think it sounds pretty accurate, don’t you think?” He snorts, waving his hand airily, “ _ ‘The world is wide, my dear detective, it won’t do to _ -OOF!”

Juno looks up at Glass, with the latter inconspicuously tucking his foot behind the other, whistling low. “Are you quite alright, Juno?”

Juno spits the sand from his mouth, batting away Glass’s outstretched hand as he struggles to his feet. “Didn’t take you for someone who plays dirty, Glass.”

“I haven’t the slightest idea what you mean.” 

“Hm.” They continue walking, with Juno stealing glances of Glass out the side of his, well, one eye. He looks more relaxed now, strands of his hair flitting from the breeze and flittering on his jaw. An easy smile rests on his face. It’s a good look.

“Do you have any plans once we leave the desert?” Glass asks suddenly, and Juno quickly averts his gaze. 

“Plans?” Juno echoes, “Not really. I’ll have to call my secretary, she’s probably worried sick by now. And tell her to sell my stuff and find herself somewhere else that’s not a dump to work in. Other than that, I guess I’ve got nothing else to do.” 

“Ah.”

“Why’d you ask?”

There’s a long moment of silence, long enough that Juno almost dares another glance at his companion. After a minute or two, he wonders if Glass has passed out on the sand or somehow magically turned mute. Three minutes tick by and he theorizes that maybe he hallucinated the entire interaction and perhaps the heat really was getting to him. 

“I...” Glass says, and there’s an odd stiffness to it, “enjoy your company.”

“You...” A laugh bursts out of him, loud and awkward. Then more. Soon, he’s on his knees on the sand, trying to stifle rowdy giggles behind the palm of his hand.

“What’s so funny?” Glass asks. His hands are crossed, and his face is crossed into a pout, but the edges of his features are softer now, fonder. There’s a nervous air there, too. 

“I can count on one hand how many people have ever said that to me.” Juno says, brushing the sand off his knees. “One’s now an estranged secret agent, one’s a crackpot inventor slash writer slash whatever job he’s taken on for the week, one’s my secretary, and one’s my...well, you get the point.”

“You certainly mingle with an interesting crowd, Juno.”

“Yeah, well. I’m an exciting lady. And. I-uh, enjoy your company, too.”

“Oh.”

Glass smiles, then. It’s a small, soft smile. It’s shy, and unplanned, and more delicate than snow’s first fall. Juno feels his next words stop in his throat. There's a ball of warmth in his chest, that tells him he'd be willing to hang every planet and moon and galaxy in the sky over and over again just to be able to orbit that starlight smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Afshsg there’s no plot to this I just wanted them to be soft

**Author's Note:**

> i have literally one scene in my mind everything else was made up on the fly plot is nonexistent


End file.
